“Hot Trees.”. That’s not really what I titled my painting, but that works, I guess. At the time, I was really into using warm colors and painting trees. And then was “now.” I think I said earlier that “now” is all we have. We’ve already lived our past, and the future is yet to be. That leaves us with our present moment. Now. Unfortunately, we don’t use “now” to our advantage.

There seem to be three ways we look at “now.”. For some of us, now is just a means to an end. We think of what can we do now to accomplish this or that. Or, we think of now as an obstacle in our way. Damn! If only this or that was different, I could do this! Now just becomes something in our way. Lastly, now is the enemy. Whatever now is, it is harmful to our vision of what we want the future to be.

To use examples, let’s say we’re at work. You’re at a meeting, and you’re trying to Impress the boss. Now is the time to make your big presentation, and use this chance to impress everyone and show them how good you are. “Now” becomes your big moment. That’s not “wrong”, it’s just using now to try and influence the future. The next example would be the obstacle. Let’s say that someone else also has a big presentation. She’s also trying to impress the boss. That’s your obstacle. In this case, she has also become your enemy. Your present moment of “now” has turned into a battle of sorts. At this one moment, this now, you have a means to an end, an obstacle in your way, and, at the same time, an enemy of your plan to impress the big rich dude. So how do you handle it?

We all meet these moments everyday, and all day, because “now” is all you have. Like we said before, time is either gone or not here yet. It’s pretty hard not to do these things, because that’s how most of us think. The present moment is all we have. The smile of a child; a sunset on the beach; the boundless love of a little dog; all these things are what matter. But most of us think of what we do next. Our minds are full of little scenarios as to how we can use the present to affect the future. No one is saying that’s bad. One has to plan, to save money, to provide for your kids, etc., but we all too often forget that the present moment is all we really have. Have you ever thought about how you’d have done things differently if only you had the chance? Well, you did have the chance. I know I did, but I didn’t value that moment in time, that “now”, for what it was really worth.

And when you think about it, it’s worth everything, because that’s all you really have. Value what you have. Don’t spend your time craving something bigger, better, more stylish, etc. Spend your time hugging your kid or your wife. Watch the sunset now, because before you know it, now will be gone.